


Hush

by AnnaHawk



Category: Pilgrimage (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Chance Meeting, Eventual Smut, F/M, PTSD reference, Sweet, meet cute, set in dublin, the mute's name is david, vacation fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-11
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:15:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22668406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaHawk/pseuds/AnnaHawk
Summary: You are on a trip around Ireland and your last stop is Dublin. You litteraly crash into David on the tramway and you find yourselves stuck close in a crowded train car. Things happen and David helps you out. You invite him for a drink to thank him, but will he show up at the promised time?
Relationships: Jon Bernthal/Reader, Jon Bernthal/You, The Mute (Pilgrimage)/Reader
Comments: 5
Kudos: 10





	Hush

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even now where this idea came from. I'm currently trying to write the next part to my Punisher series but I watched Pilgrimage recently and this idea just popped out of nowhere.   
> While I enjoyed the few Diarmuid/The Mute fics available, I noticed there were nearly none with a reader.   
> Basically this is just a story no one asked for LOL   
> I'm going to post the chapter I already wrote just to see if people would be interested in reading the next part and then I'll see I guess...  
> Please note as well that I have never been to Ireland and just spent a few hours doing research to write something as close to 'reality' as possible. If any Dubliners read this, I'm really sorry if I messed anything up. What I take from my research though, is that Now I really wanna go.

Today is day four of your little vacation in Dublin. You’ve taken a well deserved holiday from your job and decided to make a small trip to Ireland. You’ve spent one week traveling around Ireland and doing as much sightseeing as possible and kept Dublin for last. You’d heard that June is the best time to visit the country as it isn’t too cold and not too warm. Well, as warm as it could get in Ireland. And you loved everything about the country. The landscape, the history and the people are amazing. You were supposed to go with a friend but they canceled last minute and you decided to go on your own. This way you could do whatever you wanted and take as much time visiting as you'd like. 

Dublin is a beautiful city, with a lot of things to do and to visit. There are a lot of festivals at the moment and as the days are quite long, you have a lot of time to look at everything.

You took a nice hotel up in Phibsborough and took the Luas, as they called their tramway, to get to the center of Dublin or the buses to get to and from here and there. 

You already visited the Guinness Distillery as well as the Jameson Distillery and one of your friends asked you to bring back some whiskey for them. 

What you love the most though, is the historical part of the city. Being it the Museums like the one of National History or the galleries or of course, the majestic cathedrals. Christ Church and St Patrick's being some of the most beautiful ones. It had taken hours to visit them all because you didn't want to miss anything. 

This morning though, you took your time. Your feet ached something terrible yesterday evening when you finally came home from a long day of walking around. So you decided to spare them and sleep in late and only head out after lunch. 

By time you finally do head out of the hotel, it’s already two in the afternoon. You walk to the Luas Stop that will take you to one of the last discoveries of your holiday. The Library of Trinity College. It’s Ireland's biggest library. Not all of it is accessible to the public, but the Old Library is. You have always loved books and old libraries and you have seen a lot of pictures of this one so you are particularly excited to visit it. 

When you get to the Tramway stop, there are already a lot of people waiting for it. You aren't the only one aware that this is the best time of the year to visit Ireland. The weather is beautiful and warm and the city is bustling with tourists, so most forms of transport are overly crowded most of the day. You sigh and resign yourself to being crushed by the masses. 

When the tram arrives, people get restless, hoping to be the first ones to get on it. There are several train cars and you try to queue up where there are less people. It’s the end of June and even though you have a light jacket with you because when the sun sets, the temperature lowers enough to make you want to wear one, you hope they put on the A/C because that many people in this small space makes the heat nearly unbearable. 

When you step in, a cool breeze travels over your skin and you sigh in relief. Small mercies and all. You make your way to the other side of the car so other people can come in after you. You heft your backpack up over your right shoulder to adjust it as it was slipping down slowly. 

You notice there aren't any sitting spaces left and so are about to lift your right arm to grab one of the bars to hold on to, when there is a commotion behind you and you are violently propulsed forward. Your hand completely misses the bar, so you fall heavily against someone standing against the other wall. You just manage to catch your fall with your palms on a hard, muscular chest and two large, strong hands wrap around your shoulders to keep you from falling even further into them. There is still a lot of movement behind you, pushing you against the other person constantly and angry shouts all around, then a disembodied voice tells everyone that the doors are closing as well as the name of the next stop and suddenly the shoving stops and you are able to breathe a little easier. The train starts moving and you finally try to stand upright again, not that easy with the tram so crowded, and push up on your feet, the large hands falling from your shoulders. 

“I’m so, so sorry!” is the first gasping thing coming out of your mouth the second you manage to grab the bar at last and stand on your own again. The breath is nearly knocked out of you again though, when your mind finally registers who you fell into. The man is tall, with wide shoulders and the build of someone who exercises a lot. Muscular arms peek out of his dark t-shirt which clings to his narrow hips. But what gets you is his face. He has a large, somewhat crooked nose like some boxers have, nice, full lips with an enticing cupid’s bow, a shock of dark hair and an equally dark beard and deep, dark brown eyes under heavy eyebrows. 

He is the epitome of masculinity. 

You are aware that you’re staring so you lower your gaze, flushing in embarrassment and clear your throat. The guy hasn't said anything though and you look up warily, hoping he isn't mad or anything. Even though the fall wasn't your fault, you don’t really want to be stuck with someone angry just a few feet away from you for the next twenty minutes or so.

When you make eye contact again, the guy is simply looking back, expression impassive.

“Sorry” you mumble again and try for a small smile and this time he just shrugs dismissively and one corner of his lips lifts up minutely.

Okay, so not angry. Good. Your smile widens briefly and then you look to the side, out of the window, not wanting to make the man more uncomfortable. You really are standing quite close, with no real room to move. 

You let your body rock with the movement of the train, bracing everytime the tram stops and new people get in and out. It never gets less crowded, considering you are nearing the center of Dublin. The guy at least has the luck to stand against the wall. 

On the fourth stop, you are pushed forward again but manage to not fall into the man, although you see him lift his arms again as if to catch you once more if need be. You lift your eyes to his again and chuckle lightly in silent exasperation which gets you an amused eye roll from him. You bite your lip on a smile and lift your head a bit more to look at the small tram map over your heads to see when you'll have to get out. You are so focused on what you’re doing that you don’t notice the guy suddenly moving forward, extending his left arm over your shoulder with a grunt, until you hear someone yelping in pain behind you. There is some struggling and an angry voice and you try to turn to see what's going on, but you are stopped by the bulk of your stranger, now nearly plastered to your front.

“Wha-” you start to speak in confusion but then he grabs you around the shoulders with one arm and you are swiftly turned around so that you find yourself lightly slammed against the train wall and your stranger stands in front of you. You are speechless for a second, completely stumped by what just happened. The guy braces one big hand against the wall next to your shoulder and the other one holds out your wallet. Your eyes widen as you understand what just happened and you look from your wallet to your right to see a young man trying to make his way through the commuters, rubbing at one wrist. You look back to the helpful stranger and take the wallet with trembling fingers out of his hand. 

“Oh my god!  _ Thank you! _ ” you breathe vehemently. 

If you had lost your wallet, you would have been in big trouble. You had all your money and credit cards as well as your passport in it. 

The guy just grunts and grabs your backpack, now dangling from your arm, and puts it back on you so you have it across your chest and not your back anymore. He gives you a meaningful look and you can only nod dazedly and put your wallet back inside, zipping the bag up. 

“You really are a lifesaver” you tell him quietly but fiercely but he just shrugs and shakes his head, looking away. You wonder briefly if he's usually this silent or if he’s shy or if there is something else, but you don’t want to push so you keep quiet as well.

He still holds himself up with one hand next to your shoulder and the other one is on the bar you were holding earlier. 

At the next stop, you actually see him brace himself and take the brunt of the moving crowd behind him, pushing back, allowing you more space. 

You look at him in wonder. This guy is like a true knight in shining armor. You are not one to believe in fairytales and soul mates and yada yada but you have never seen a man you just met, or more like slammed into, be so selfless and considerate of a total stranger. 

You can feel yourself flushing at the kind attention and smile fondly.

“ _ Next stop, Dawson street _ ” comes the disembodied voice again and you frown. What? You look to the other side of the train car, over the heads of the other passengers and realise you missed your stop.

“Shit” you grumble and you can feel the stranger’s eyes on you. 

“ _ Dawson street _ ” says the voice again and the doors next to you open. At least this time, you won't have to walk through the throng of bodies. 

You see the stranger move as well and you follow him outside. You look around you and are completely lost. You only missed one stop but you are so not prepared that even though you have a good sense of direction, you are a bit confused about your whereabouts. 

The stranger walks by you and gives you a small smile and a wave and walks off. You wave back distractedly and bite your lip before you move into action. 

“Hey, wait!” you call after him and he actually turns back to you. 

You briefly wondered if he might be deaf and was only lip reading earlier but apparently that's not it. 

“I’m sorry to bother you again but… I’m kind of lost. I wanted to go to the Old Library but I missed a stop and I was wondering if you could, you know…” you trail off, shrugging in embarrassment.

He looks at you for a beat and then motions for you to follow him. 

You brighten instantly. 

“Oh, you could just indicate the way, you know. I don’t want to take more of your time” you tell him as you reach him but he shakes his head again and you start walking together up the street.

“Thank you… again” you say laughing slightly and he just grunts in answer. 

You walk quietly side by side for a small while. You think about how quiet he is again. He's obviously not giving you the silent treatment, otherwise he wouldn't be helping you, but his lack of speech is not a  _ normal  _ quiet. Not the shy quiet. You side eye him while you walk but you didn't see any hearing aid earlier and he  _ did _ react to your shout. Sighing at yourself for being nosy, you shrug mentally and keep walking. 

After a few minutes you arrive in front of a large building which you recognize from pictures. It’s Trinity College. You sigh in relief when you see it and turn to your stranger. 

“You truly are the best!” you gush happily and he rolls his eyes, like what he did was nothing. 

“No seriously. You made my day a lot easier and you saved me a lot of stress and panic by catching this pickpocket” 

Now the guy is actually blushing. And if that isn't just adorable. Seeing such a reaction from such a big guy is everything. You can’t help laughing happily again. 

“Hey, listen, how about this… I’d really love to invite you for a drink. Coffee or beer or whatever you'd like… to thank you, yeah?” you ask rapidly. You really want to do something in return. Even if it’s just buying a drink.

The guy starts shaking his head again and waving his hands, clearly saying that it was fine and you don’t need to thank him. 

“You don’t have to decide right now, okay? I’m going to spend a good few hours in there” you indicate the building behind you with a thumb “So let's say, we meet back here at 6. If you’re not here by 6.10 I'll just leave and that'll be it, okay? No pressure.” 

He looks at you a bit stunned and you have to smile. You do like to ramble. Poor guy. 

“Oh and by the way...” you lean forward into his space and tell him your name as you kiss him softly on one cheek. “That is for if you don’t show up later” you half whisper against his skin and lean away with a soft smile, slowly walking away backwards. 

The guy looks at you with surprise and you’re pretty sure he doesn't have complete strangers kissing him like this every day. But you just grin and wink before waving and turning the other way. 

You really hope he’ll be there later.

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, so please your opinion? Should I keep writing?


End file.
